Letter: Ayotte’s Town Meeting in Warren

On April 30, I attended Sen. Kelly Ayotte’s town hall meeting in Warren and would like to point out a few observations that were left out of the media’s coverage. To begin with, Ayotte’s supporters outnumbered the out-of-state protesters by five to one. Secondly, the senator has been doing these town hall meetings since she took office, and this was her 21st and the third one that she has held in Grafton County alone. I have been to those meetings and the format for Warren’s town hall was the same as the previous meetings: no screening of questions, no planted questions and, in fact, audience members were not even asked to write down their question, just check what topic they wanted to discuss and sign their name; everyone had the same opportunity to do so.

Next I would like to dispel the ridiculously inaccurate statement being thrown out there by the anti-Second Amendment folks that the senator does not support background checks. This is absolutely false. In fact, the senator supported the Grassley amendment, which would have improved the existing background-check system, criminalized gun trafficking and straw purchasing, boosted resources to improve school safety and addressed the mental health gaps in the criminal justice system. This bill also would have increased the resources to deal with those who attempt to buy guns illegally. If we can’t enforce our current laws, how is creating more onerous laws going to matter?

As tragic as the shooting in Newtown was — and believe me, having grandchildren myself, I was outraged by this vicious attack on the most innocent of our citizenry — the law that President Obama and the left is pushing would not have prevented this horrible event from occurring. As usual, Ayotte used her common sense combined with her strong background in law enforcement (she’s a former New Hampshire attorney general) to support the right amendment. I only wish my other senator would have had the courage to break with her party and support the common-sense Grassley amendment. At least then we could have started down the path to a more common-sense gun-control solution.

Warren, N.H. — U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., fielded angry questions from several people — including a daughter of the slain principal of Sandy Hook Elementary School — about her recent vote against expanded background checks for gun purchases during a Town Hall forum yesterday with constituents. In her first swing through Grafton County since the controversial vote last month, …